American intelligence agencies have given Israel the green light to assassinate Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) General Qassem Soleimani, Kuwaiti media has reported.
The Al-Jarida newspaper quoted a source as saying that Soleimani, who oversees Iran’s fighting and its loyal military arms in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Yemen and elsewhere, was about to be assassinated by Israel three years ago.
A major former Mossad official told the source that the United States warned the Iranian commander about the assassination plan “in some way,” leading to the failure of the attempt. The source noted that a sharp dispute emerged between the American and Israeli security and intelligence agencies around this issue.
The Trump administration and Israel have reached an agreement regarding the danger Soleimani poses and his threat to their interests in the region.
The newspaper also said that it had obtained information confirming the identity of the number two Iranian commander in Syria as Mohamed Reda Falah Zadeh, known as “Abu Baker.”
The sources said that Abu Baker had been given broad powers in the Syrian field and had participated in the Astana conference in the Iranian delegation. They noted that the commander coordinates visits of Iranian delegations of soldiers, combat experts, Revolutionary Guard commanders and others to Syria.
They said that revealing the identity of Abu Baker represented an intelligence breakthrough, adding that he might also be a target for Israel and Syrian opposition groups.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
